Air control for shoe press machines



J y 1934. w. c. CARD, JR

AIR CONTROL FOR SHOE PRESS MACHINES Filed Aug. 5, 193s 2 Sheets5heet 1 INVENTOR BY ATTORNEY July 3, 1934.

W. C. CARD, JR

AIR CONTROL FOR SHDE PRESS MACHINES Filed Aug. 5, 1953 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR ATTORNEY Patented July 3, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT; OFFICE AIR CONTROL FOR SHOE PRESS MACHINES Application August 1933, Serial No. 683,796

9 Claims.

This invention relates to shoe press machines such as are used to affix the outer sole to the lasted upper in the manufacture of cemented shoes, and relates more particularly to the means a for effecting inflation and deflation of the presses used on such a machine.

The general object of the invention is to provide a machine having a number of inflatable shoe presses which are adapted successively to be 10 presented at aloading station, wherein the machine is equipped with improved means for effecting inflation and deflation of the presses.

More particularly, the invention has for objects the provision of means for effecting inflation and deflation of each of a series of shoe presses, which means is simple in construction, positive in action, efficient, and easy to operate.

A further object of the invention is to provide means for inflating a press located ata loading station, together with means for simultaneously deflating a press located ahead of such station, wherein the deflating means may be actuated in conjunction with or independently of the inflating means.

Other objects of the invention will in part be obvious and will in part appear hereinafter.

The invention accordingly comprises the features of construction, combination of elements, and arrangement of parts, which will be exemplified in the construction hereinafter set forth and the scope of the application of which will be indicated in the claims.

For a fuller understanding of the nature and objects of the invention reference should be had to the following detailed description taken in conrection with the accompanying drawings, -in which:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary front elevation showing part of a shoe press conveyor frame equipped with the novel air control means of the present invention, certain parts being broken away;

Fig. 2 is a transverse,'vertical sectional view showing the shoe press conveyor of Fig. 1 as viewed from the right, certain parts being broken Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view taken substantially along line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary vertical perspective view on an enlarged scale, showing parts of the 5 air control mechanism;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view, on an enlarged scale, taken transversely through the conveyor and showing parts of the air control mechanism; and

Fig. 6 is a vertical sectional view, taken trans versely through the conveyor, illustrating an air supply chuck forming part of the present air control equipment.

The present invention is primarily useful in connection with sole affixing machines compris ing an elongate flexible conveyor equipped with a series of inflatable shoe presses. Such a conveyor is shown, for example, in an application of Arthur J. Weiss, Serial No. 414,846, filed December 18, 1929. In such a conveyor, each press is brought to a stop at a loading station where an operator inserts a lasted upper and an adhesively treated outer sole in the press and inflates the latter to clamp and affix these parts. As each press is loaded, the conveyor is moved a distance corresponding to that between two successive presses, and in the course of time the entire conveyor becomes loaded with clamped shoes, whereupon the first loaded press is deflated, and the shoe removed therefrom and a new shoe assembly loaded therein. While the inflating and deflating mechanism of the present invention "is preferably utilized for, and is illustrated as being mounted on a conveyor such as that shown in the mentioned application of Arthur J. Weiss, it will be clear that its advantages are applicable to other types of shoe press machines, such as turret and wheel presses and, in fact, any machine wherein a series of inflatable pads are adapted to be successively presented at an inflating sta- 86 tion.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, there is shown a conveyor frame comprising upper rail members 10 supported by suitable vertical legs or stiles 11. This frame is adapted to 90 have mounted for movement thereon an endless conveyor, designated 12, which may be of any suitable type and which carries with it a series of presses 13 located thereon at conveniently. spaced intervals. Suitable driving mechanism (not shown) is provided for intermittently mov- 'ing this conveyor so as to bring each press in turn into the vicinity of a loading station adjacent an air supply chuck 14. This chuck may, if desired, take the form of above mentioned application, Serial No. 414,846, being slidably mounted in a bracket 15, which is fixed on the frame, for movement toward and away from the air valve 16 of each successive press. This air valve is located at the outer 105 end of a combined air inlet and outlet conduit, and is of a familiar type having a protruding plunger which is adapted to afford communication through the conduit whenever it is depressed. The air chuck 14 is adapted to be moved by a 11" that shown in the lever-1'7 (Fig. 6) pivotally supported on bracket 15 and having its lower end pivotally attached to a link 18. Movement of link 18 serves to effect movement of the chuck into and out of contact with an adjacent shoe press.

The means for moving this link comprises a treadle 19 to which is connected a link 20 having its upper end pivotally attached to one arm of a bell-crank lever 21. Link 18 has its forward end pivotally connected to the other arm of this bellcrank lever so that depression of treadle 19 will I and carries a pin which extends into slot 23 so as to be picked up by and partake of the motion of bell-crank 21 when the latter is actuated in a clockwis direction (Figs. 2 and 4). Adjacent the other end of shaft 22 is fixedly keyed an arm or lever 26, to the outer end of which is pivotally connected a link 27 which in turn is pivotally connected to the lower end of a lever 28 (Figs. 1 and 2). Intermediate its ends, this lever is pivotally supported by a bracket 29 which is fixed to the conveyor frame. At its upper end lever 28 is pivoted to a plunger 30 which passes slidably through a suitable bore in bracket 29 and which has fixed to its outer end a deflating plunger bar 31. In a preferred type of conveyor machine the successive shoe presses are adapted to be brought to a drift stop at the loading station, and, for this reason, the plunger bar 31 is preferably made of elongate form, as illustrated. A pair of brackets 32 are located beneath bar 31, slidably to support the latter.

' Between the lower end of lever 28 and a convenient part of the conveyor frame, is stretched a tension spring 33 which serves normally to hold plunger bar 31 retracted out of the path of the plunger of valve 16. Upon counterclockwise movement of lever 28, however, it will be seen that bar 31 is moved toward the adjacent shoe press where it will press against the valve 16 and effect deflation of the shoe press-pad. This deflation occurs simultaneously with the inflating operation occurring at the press located at the loading station. Thus, when it is desired to bring air chuck 14 into inflating relation with a shoe press at the loading station, treadle 19 is de-' pressed, lowering link 20', and effecting clockwise rotation of bell crank 21, which in turn effects inflating movement of the air chuck as hereinbefore described. During its clockwise rotation,

ing stationis being deflated. This makes the press ready" for unloading and reloading by the operator when it reaches him at the loading station. 7

At the end of. eachdays run, it becomes desirable to deflate all of the presses on the conveyor without reloading and re-inflating them. For this purpose, means is provided for keeping plunger bar 31 in deflating position, independently of any operation of the air chuck 14. This means, in addition to the already described structure, comprises a limiting abutment, shown as being in the form of stop pin 34 which is affixed to a suitable leg 11 of the conveyor frame, in the path of arm 26. This arm can be swung down by hand until it abuts the stop pin, and since the arm 26 and its jointed link 27 will then have buckled past their dead center or colinear position, the spring 33 will serve to keep arm 26 against pin 34, thus holding plunger bar 31 in an advanced position toward the shoe presses where it will be engaged by the deflating valve plunger of successive valves 16 as they pass by. For this reason, the forward end or nose of bar 31 is bev-' eled (Fig. 3), better to enable it to pick up the several valve plungers. Depression of arm 26 into stop contact with pin 34 is feasible because of the slot 23 in bell crank 21, which permits the required loose motion of pin 25, arm 24, etc., with respect to the bell crank. This slot also permits operation of the inflating mechanism while the deflating plunger bar is fixedly held in advanced position. It will be seen that there has been provided a construction wherein the inflation of a press at the loading station effects deflation of a press ahead of this station so that the latter press is ready for handling by the operator when it reaches him, and that this deflating apparatus is capable of performing its function even when inflation ofthe presses is notrequired.

It will thus be seen that there has been provided a machine which is well suited to fulfil its functions. Since certain changes may be made in the above construction and different embodiments of the invention could be made without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

It is also to be understood that the following claims are intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the invention herein described, and all statments of the scope of the invention which as a matter of language, might be said to fall therebetween.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

1. In a machine adapted successively to present inflatable shoe presses at a loading sta tion, means operable to effect inflation of a press located at such' station, means for deflating a press located ahead of such station, and a manual and common actuating means for operating said inflating and deflating means in unison.

2. In a machine adapted successively to present inflatable shoe presses at a loading sta tion, means operable to effect inflation of a press located at such station, and means actuated by said first named means for deflating a press located ahead of such station.

3. In a machine adapted successively to present inflatable shoe presses at a loading station, means for inflating a press located at said station, means for deflating a press located ahead of said station, and connections between said means to effect operation of the latter upon actuation of the former.

means for inflating a press located at said station, means for deflating a press located ahead of said station, and connections between said means selectively positionable to allow operation of said deflating means in conjunction with or independently of said inflating means.

5. In a machine adapted successively to present inflatable shoe presses at a loading station, an air source movable into contact with a press located at said station, a deflating bar movable into contact with a press located ahead of said station, and common actuating means for moving said air source and barin unison to effect inflation and deflation of said respective presses.

6. In a machine adapted successively to present inflatable shoe presses at a loading station, an air source movable into contact with a press located at said station, a deflating bar movable into contact with a press located ahead of said station, means for moving said air source into inflating position, means for moving said bar into deflating position, and connections for actuating said second means upon operation of said first named means.

'7. In a machine adapted successively to present inflatable shoe presses at a loading station, an air source movable into contact with a press at said station, a deflating bar movable into contact with a press ahead of said station, means for moving said air source, means for moving said bar, and loose-motion connections between said means for selectively operating said bar in conjunction with or independently of said air source.

8. In a machine adapted successively to present inflatable shoe presses at a loading station, an air source movable into contact with a press at said station, a deflating bar movable into contact with a press ahead of said station, means including a slotted bell-crank lever for moving said air source, a pin in the slot of said lever adapted to be picked up and moved thereby, and means for transmitting movement of said pin to said deflating bar, said pin being selectively positionable in said slot to allow operation of said bar in conjunction with or independently of said air source.

9. In a machine adapted successively to present inflatable shoe presses at a loading station, an air source at said station, a link for operating said source to effect inflation of a press, a slotted bell-crank lever for moving said link, means for moving said lever, a deflating bar, a link for advancing said bar to effect deflation of a press, an arm for moving said link, means formoving said arm including a pin located in the slot of said bell-crank lever to derive movement therefrom, a limiting abutment in the path of movement of said arm, and spring means arranged normally to urge said bar to retracted position and selectively to hold it in advanced deflating position when said arm rests against said abutment.

WILLIAM C. CARD, Jn. 

